EARTHWARD

Bylaws

Turn your vision earthward –
      'Tis we must lend a hand.
Samuel P. Putnam

1  Bylaws
1.1  Significance of Bylaws: These bylaws govern the everyday operations of the organization, as a whole, and those of each volunteer (as defined in 2.2 below).  No such volunteer may countermand or deviate from any provision of these bylaws, except:
1.1.1  as stipulated in another provision,
 
1.1.2  or as required by local or federal laws of the applicable jurisdiction, in which case full documentation of the deviation should be made available to the board immediately, or if possible, preemptively.
1.2  Amendments to Bylaws: Amendment of these bylaws becomes effective when all of the following conditions are met in sequence:
1.2.1  Any board member calls for a vote on possible amendment of the bylaws.
 
1.2.2  At least two other board members endorse the need for the vote.
 
1.2.3  Approval of the Board is established, as described in 4.4.
1.3  Inclusions: In addition to this text, all of the following are considered to be an inseparable part of the bylaws, and therefore of the same significance as described in 1.1, and subject to the same conditions of amendment as described in 1.2:
1.3.1  The organization name, both in its short form, "EARTHWARD", and in its long form, "Earth's Atheist Resistance To Holy Wars And Religious Devastation."
 
1.3.2  The Mission Statement, as presented earlier in this document.
 
1.3.3  The organization logo(s), described as a full view of Earth from space, with a white dove, carrying an olive branch, flying toward Earth from the viewers near foreground.  Note that exact graphic details are at the discretion of the Public Relations Committee.
 
1.3.4  Post and committee descriptions, as presented earlier in this document.
 
1.3.5  The organization structure, as presented in this and other documents.
2  Voluntary Service
2.1  EARTHWARD is a public benefit, nonprofit, nongovernmental, nonmembership organization for charitable purposes, which relies on donations and voluntary services of nontheist individuals dedicated to the cause of relieving human suffering imposed by religiously motivated violence.
 
2.2  Hereinafter, the term "volunteer" refers to any such individual as described in 2.1 , who has met all of the following conditions, in sequence:
2.2.1  Has submitted, to the Public Relations Committee, an application indicating his/her desire to render such services.
 
2.2.2  Has been subject to, and passed, some reasonable screening by the Intelligence Committee, to confirm suitability.
 
2.2.3  Has received the approval of the Council Director.
 
2.2.4  Has signed an Affirmation of Solidarity, attesting to his/her dedication to the cause, and commitment to the goals and policies of the organization, as stated in these bylaws and other official documents; and to his/her willingness to comply with the decisions of the board, as a whole, as well as those of individual board members.
 
2.2.5  The Secretary has certified reception of a properly signed Affirmation of Solidarity document, as described in 2.2.4.
2.3  Termination of Voluntary Service
2.3.1  A volunteer may withdraw from voluntary service at any time, by submitting a signed form to the Council Director, indicating a desire to do so.  Volunteers are requested, however, to give advance notice (preferably at least one month) of their desire to withdraw, particularly in cases where their abrupt withdrawal would negatively impact the organization or its activities.
 
2.3.2  A volunteer may be relieved of voluntary service, upon mutual agreement among the Council Director and the Heads of all Committees in which the volunteer serves, that the volunteer does not meet the requirements stated above, or is otherwise unsuitable.
 
2.3.3  A volunteer who holds a position on the board, who either withdraws per 2.3.1 or is relieved per 2.3.2, is also implicitly relieved of that position.
3  Public Commitments
3.1  EARTHWARD shall never condone, incite nor engage in physical violence of any kind, or for for any reason.  Any volunteer found to have done so, will be subject to disciplinary action, including possible expulsion per 2.3.2, except as stipulated in 3.2 below.
 
3.2  In that a number of volunteers will be working in volatile regions, any actions, violent or otherwise, in self defense, or in spontaneous defense of another whose life is in immediate danger, are to be accepted, and considered exceptions to 3.1.  Volunteers may never engage in any premeditated actions of a military or combative nature, however.
 
3.3  In all actions undertaken by the organization, utmost efforts will be exerted to discover and comply with all local and federal laws of applicable jurisdiction.
 
3.4  Eligibility of a potential aid recipient shall not depend in any way on the religious, political or ideological views of that individual, nor on such irrelevant factors as his/her race, gender or sexual preference.
 
3.5  Neither EARTHWARD, nor any of its volunteers shall engage in activities intended to subvert the religious, political or ideological views of aid recipients.
 
3.6  No obligation or debt to EARTHWARD or any of its volunteers is incurred as a result of accepting aid there from.
 
3.7  No volunteer may engage EARTHWARD resources in a manner intended for personal gain, or for the benefit of some cause not specifically approved and documented herein.
 
3.8  Utmost efforts will be exerted to ensure the privacy of donors, recipients and volunteers.  Private information, which could be used to identify these individuals, shall not be disclosed to third parties, except under either of the following circumstances:
3.8.1  The individual has given written and signed permission to disclose such information.
 
3.8.2  Disclosure of the information is required by law.
3.9  EARTHWARD will strive for utmost lucidity in its operations, and more particularly in its financial transactions.  Documents of all such transactions, including accepted donations, purchases and aid distributions, will be made readily available to public scrutiny.  Personal information, however, will be omitted, in compliance with 3.8, above.
4  Board Posts
4.1  Assignment of Individuals to Specific Posts on the Board of Directors
4.1.1  General
4.1.1.1  All assignments to board posts are determined by election.
 
4.1.1.2  No individual may be assigned to a specific post against his or her will.
 
4.1.1.3  In acceptance of a board position, an Affirmation of Commitment document must be signed, attesting to the signatory's acceptance of the responsibilities and limitations of the office, as well as a commitment to its goals.
4.1.1.4  The Secretary has certified reception of a properly signed Affirmation of Commitment document, as described in 2.2.4.
4.1.2  Specifics
4.1.2.1  Committee Heads are to be elected by a vote among volunteers of the relevant committee.   Committee Heads are considered members, but not officers, of the Board of Directors.
 
4.1.2.2  Officers of the board, include Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Council Director and Human Relations Facilitator.  Officers are elected by a vote of all volunteers of the organization, where all volunteers' votes are of equal weight.
 
4.1.2.3  The office of Treasurer, may not be filled by someone who has been convicted of any crime involving theft, or the misappropriation of funds.
4.1.3  Exceptions
4.1.3.1  If and when the post of Chair is vacated abruptly, and no duly elected successor has been determined, the Vice Chair will immediately assume the post of Chair, and vacate the post of Vice Chair.
 
4.1.3.2  If and when a post other than Chair is vacated abruptly, and no duly elected successor has been determined, the chair may, as deemed appropriate, appoint an individual to the post, on an interim basis;
 
4.1.3.3  Until such time, the holder of the immediately superior post is responsible for the duties of the vacated post.
4.2  Duration of Board Posts
4.2.1  Elected Posts: Two years; number of terms unlimited.
 
4.2.2  Non-elected Posts: Maximum of three months; limited to one term only.  Election for the relevant post should take place within that period.
4.3  Removal from Office
4.3.1  Regardless of the aforementioned Duration of Board Posts, a board member is relieved of his post, when all of the following conditions are met in sequence:
4.3.1.1  Any board member calls for a vote on the removal of the individual on grounds that he/she has used his/her position in the organization for personal gain, or has taken actions which are contrary to the bylaws and/or purpose and mission of the organization, to local or federal laws in the applicable jurisdiction, or to the instructions of a superior board member.
 
4.3.1.2  At least two other board members, including at least one officer of the board, endorse the need for the vote, on the same grounds.
 
4.3.1.3  A 2/3 (two-thirds) majority of volunteers vote in favor of removal.
4.3.2  Administration of the vote for removal of a board member is normally the responsibility of the Chair.
 
4.3.3  However, should any board member judge that after one week of all conditions for such a vote being met, the Chair is unable or unwilling to administer that vote, and should that board member be willing to accept full responsibility for that judgment, he/she may administer that vote him/herself.
 
4.3.4  Accepting "full responsibility", in 4.3.3 above, means that after the voting is completed, and the results are carried out, the board member, him/herself, may be subject disciplinary action, including possible removal proceedings, should it be determined that he/she acted without proper justification in administering the vote.
4.4  Decisions of the Board Except where stipulated otherwise herein, Approval of the Board is determined by the following conditions:
4.4.1  At least a 2/3 (two-thirds) majority of the members of the board vote in favor of approval.
 
4.4.2  Those voting in favor must include at least 1/3 (one-third) of the officers of the board.
 
4.4.3  Each board member is allowed one vote, regardless of the number of board positions held.
5  Committees
5.1  Assignment of Individuals to Ordinary Committees
5.1.1  Each individual may serve on any ordinary committee of his/her choice, upon approval of the relevant Committee Head, except as stipulated in 5.1.5.
 
5.1.2  Each individual may serve on no more than one committee at a given time, except as stipulated in 5.1.5.
 
5.1.3  Each individual may elect to revise his/her choice of committee participation no more than once annually, except as stipulated in 5.1.5.
 
5.1.4  Committee Heads and the Council Director may, and should, advise individuals as to their most appropriate and effectual placement within the organization.
 
5.1.5  The Council Director may approve exceptions to, or override on his/her own volition, any of the stipulations of 5.1.1 (including either approval or disapproval by the Committee Head), 5.1.2 or 5.1.3.
5.2  Assignment of Individuals to Special Committees
5.2.1  Appointees of Special Committees are assigned by the Vice Chair, however,
 
5.2.2  No individual may be appointed to a Special Committee against his/her will.
 
5.2.3  An individual may serve on more than one Special Committee concurrently, as well as continuing to serve on (an) Ordinary Committee(s), as deemed appropriate by the Vice Chair.
 
5.2.4  Special Committee appointments in excess of 5% of the total number of volunteers, requires approval by the Chair.
5.3  Creation and Disbandment of Ordinary Committees
5.3.1  Disbandment of any Ordinary Committee, or creation of a new Ordinary Committee, in addition to those described in this document, is initiated by the Council Director.
 
5.3.2  Creation or Disbandment of any Ordinary Committee requires approval by the Chair.
5.4  Creation and Disbandment of Special Committees
5.4.1  Creation and Disbandment of Special Committees is solely the responsibility of the Vice Chair.